Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley
Gorgeous flowing nearly-floor length dreads, really good backing singers, positive message, cameo from brother Stephen a treat, but the best moments were when he was doing Dad’s songs. However, on the last number, I think one of his own, he did get 95 percent of about 40,000 people to wave their arms the entire song. All praise.

Jack Ingram
Rock with a little country flavor, very likeable and real.

Patrice Pike
Did you watch any of “Rock Star Supernova”? Yeah, I hated it too. But maybe you caught the blond-streaked chick with shoulder sleeve who was really good, and of course was eliminated. That was yet another Austin star, known for her Seven Sisters group and now stepping in front of the hometown crowd for her first appearance since “losing” on national TV, and asking, “Do ya still love me?” I hope Cat Power heard the roar, and she could certainly take lessons from this non-stop dervish of rock and roll energy who stalked the stage and the spectrum of rock’s boundaries, delivering a show I couldn’t break away from.

Buckwheat Zydeco
Nice change of pace in a fest without that much breadth (no complaints, though!). The Cajun legend can’t help but put a smile on your face, and his show in the tent really took you down to New Orleans.

Matisyahu
I loved this hadissic reggae man from Brooklyn the first time I heard his second album, recorded live at Stubb’s, of all places, a famous Austin club. Then the new studio album disappointed, so I was really curious to see him live, here, as was the whole town. One review said, “Matisyahu was the hottest act at ACL … until he took off his long black coat and big black hat.” A joke, but I’ll go with that assessment. He’s visually interesting, twirling and crouching and climbing high up on speaker stacks to scope his band playing, but that band from Brooklyn Heights couldn’t win talent night in Sav-la-mar and anyone trying to perform reggae while denying “his” music has anything to do with rasta, ripping off a culture and inserting his own without giving recognition, doesn’t have a long future in the reggae world. He’s a novelty, and I didn’t hear anything that made me think he’ll still be around in a few years.

White Ghost Shivers
Maybe I should rethink that breadth assessment, as I go from Zydeco to Matis to White Ghost Shivers, just about the most visually and musically … different … band you’ll ever see. Eight musicians crowding the stage, with a tall fiddle player next to the short klezmer-sounding clarinetist then an even-shorter accordian player on the right, a Rocky Horror/Cabaret-outfitted floozy singer out front, a very short pachuco-styled stand-up bass player on the left and a seven-foot banjo picker in the center, playing music from turn of the last century to between the wars (the Europe, not the desert, ones). Entertaining, well-played.

Los Amigos Invisibles
Another group I had always heard so much about, turns out they’re basically a lounge disco band. With a hardcore following.

Flaming Lips
Not going to go into a review. Their shows are legendary. Like I said, you’ve got to see them once, and now I have, and I’m glad, they’re lots of fun, start to finish, but would I buy an album? Not necessarily, and not without listening.